Skirt blocker



March 8,1938. J D, HO AN 2,110,666

SKIRT BLOCKER Filed June 15, 11936 Jar/ .D. H 0 4/;

ATTORNEYj Patented Mar. 8, 1938 UNITED STATES rATE T Fries Application June 15,

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a garment stretcher of a class embodying a plurality of frame members over which a garment is placed and held in a desired stretched position, particularly after cleaning and during drying thereof. The invention is particularly adapted to drying of womens skirts of crocheted or knitted fabric and will be described as embodied in such device.

The invention contemplates and therefore has as an object a skirt blocker for stretching a garment longitudinally and transversely and holding the stretched garment in such blocked condition that after removing the garment it will have the desired shape.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a simple and inexpensive device that is foldable into a small space when not in use and adapted for use by the average woman in the home.

The objects of the invention are obtained by providing suitably contoured side bars to apply transverse tension on the garment to be blocked. End bars are suitably secured to the side bars to hold such side bars in spaced relation and to provide means for longitudinally tensioning the garment being blocked. The desirable contour of a garment, for example a skirt, is not obtained when placed upon a blocker that holds the garment edges in a straight line. I therefore provide suitable contour of the end members to conform with the contour of the article being stretched. Fasteners are then provided upon the end members so that the garment may be easily attached to maintain the desired shape. A construction within the purview of the invention is hereafter more fully described and illustrated in the drawing, in which: i

Fig. 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a sideview 0f the embodiment shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1. s

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line P- S of Fig. 2.

1936, Serial No. 85,206

ends of the members are slotted as shown at 5. The slot at the lower end, 6, terminates short of the end of the member and is provided with suitable graduation 9 whereby proper adjustment is facilitated.

The ends of the member 3 are centrally grooved to a depth shown by dotted line H to receive the reduced end E of the side member. The. lower edge !2 is conto-ured'to be suitable for stretching a garment of a given type. For example, if a skirt is to be stretched, a suitable arcuate contour is given edge l2, as shown, to conform with the waistband when the garment is in a flat stretched condition. Slots G3, which are generally parallel with edge l2, are provided to facilitate adjustment.

End member 4, similar to end member 3, has its ends centrally grooved as shown at I9 in Fig. 3, the grooves terminating as shown by dotted lines I4 in Fig. 1. This end member is also provided with a suitable contoured upper edge i5 to conform with the desired shape of the edge of the garment to be stretched. Again, if the article to be stretched is a skirt, a suitable arcuate curve is provided. The radius of curvature in such instance would approximate that of edge I2 but would provide a concave edge, whereas the edge of the member 3 is convex. The ends of the member 4 are also slotted as shown at 26, the slots being generally parallel to edge l5.

Edges I2 and i5 are provided with fasteners 56. Any suitable fasteners may be used instead of hooks 56 as shown. Two rows of fasteners are provided in order that attachment to the garment may be made at frequent intervals throughout its circumference. These fasteners are located at regularly spaced intervals and also serve as a scale for suitable transverse adjustment of the blocker.

The stretcher members are secured together by any suitable means such as bolts 1! provided with wing nuts 18. By merely loosening the wing nuts on the bolts H the blocker may be readily adjusted, measurements being marked along the hooks it from the center to the ends of the top and bottom bars to correspond with the graduations 9 on the side bars. Or, member 3 may readily be removed by virtue of the open slots 5. Member 4 may be readily detached from side members 3, 4 by removing the bolts from slots 6. The device can be thus readily stored in a small space when not in use.

The construction employed is capable of a certain range of change and modification without a material departure from the spirit of the invention, and I do not limit myself to the specific structure disclosed except as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A garment form comprising a pair of side members having slots in their opposite ends, a pair of end members having their ends bifurcated to receive and adjustably connect said side members in variously spaced relation, said end members having their opposed edges arcuate and means for securing the garment edges to the arcuate faces of the end members.

2. A garment form comprising a pair of side bars adapted to receive a garment to be stretched, an upper end member adjustably connected to the upper ends of said side bars, said member having its lower edge convex, a lower end member adjustably connected to the lower ends of said side members and having its upper edge concave and means on the opposed curved edges of said members and adjacent the opposite faces thereof for securing a garment thereto with the opposite sides of the garment in parallel planes.

3. A skirt stretcher including a pair of side members, and a pair of end members, means to connect the end members and said side members together for adjustment both laterally and 1ongitudinally, the adjacent sides of said end members being curved downwardly, and means on said curved sides of said end members to secure the upper and lower ends of a skirt thereto.

JERRY D. HOGAN. 

